Sunday Paper Recommends—Week of January 18, 2026
This week at The Sunday Paper, we're sharing a film, book, podcast, and recipe that we believe will add inspiration to your days. We hope these suggestions open your heart and mind and encourage you to come together for meaningful conversations.
What We’re Watching
Our social media manager Mara has been all-in on Heated Rivalry for weeks and has slowly convinced most everyone on the team to watch it. Needless to say, we’re headed to the cottage! In a recent interview, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman admitted that he's binge-watching the show about the love story between two top hockey stars as well.
What We’re Reading
In honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, we are featuring We Dream a World by his granddaughter, Yolanda Renee King. The book carries the light of her grandparents, Martin Luther King, Jr. and Coretta Scott King. Ahead of Dr. King’s 100th birthday in 2029, Yolanda’s nonprofit Realize the Dream calls for 100 million hours of service by then.
What We’re Listening To
For the past 50 years, journalist Terry Gross has focused on one thing: her podcast Fresh Air. In this talk essay interview, Gross reflects on how the show began as an experiment for WHYY and shares her hopes for the future of public media and long-form interviews.
Sunday Paper Recipe
Chocolate “Turtle” Cakes
Makes 6
This dessert is inspired by a box of chocolates called Turtles that I was gifted many years ago as an apology from a boyfriend. The boyfriend is long gone (the Turtles were good, but not that good!), but the taste and texture of those chocolate-covered caramel domes (the turtle’s shell) with pecans underneath (its head and legs) lived on in my imagination for many years, until they hatched into the idea of this recipe.
The chocolate has a slightly gooey center—bake it for 1 minute longer if you want it firmer. These are best eaten warm, when the sticky pecan caramel mingles with the soft cake, with lightly whipped cream or ice cream.
Chocolate cake
½ cup (115 g) butter, cold, cut into 6 pieces, plus 2 teaspoons extra, softened, for brushing
¼ cup (25 g) unsweetened cocoa powder (preferably Dutch-process), plus 1 ½ tablespoons
extra for dusting
½ cup (120 ml) whole milk
2 teaspoons instant coffee powder (optional, see Preparation Tip)
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons (140 g) all-purpose flour packed ½ cup plus 1 tablespoon 120 g (4¼ ounces) light brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
Pecan caramel sauce
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons (130 g) granulated sugar
3 tablespoons water
1/3 cup (80 ml) heavy cream
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
¾ teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon flaky sea salt
½ cup (50 g) roasted pecans, roughly chopped
To finish
ice cream or lightly whipped cream, to serve
Preparation Tips
> The cakes are cooked in individual bowls. I like to use my rice bowls, but any heatproof ramekin or bowl around ¾ cup (180 ml) capacity will be fine. It can be fun to use a variety, but keep in mind that the bake time may change—thicker ceramic bowls will take a little longer, and metal ramekins will heat up more quickly.
> Be brave with the cooking of the caramel. Take it as far as you can without burning it, to give it a deeper, more complex flavor. Make sure the pecans are well roasted to bring out their buttery flavors and maximize their crunch.
> Coffee enhances and deepens the flavor of cocoa, bringing out its richness and complexity. But if serving this to children, leave out the coffee, or use decaffeinated instead (unless you want to be up all night!).
- Prepare 6 ovenproof bowls (about ¾-cup/180 ml capacity; see Preparation Tip) by brushing lightly and evenly with the softened butter. Put the extra cocoa powder into one of the bowls, rotate the bowl to coat thinly in the cocoa powder, then tap the cocoa out into another bowl and repeat the process until all the bowls are coated lightly and evenly. Turn the last bowl over the sink or a compost bin and tap firmly to remove the excess cocoa powder. Place the bowls on a baking sheet and set aside for now.
- To make the cakes, put the milk in a medium saucepan and place over medium-low heat. When the milk is hot, remove the pan from the heat and add the butter, coffee (if using), and vanilla. Whisk gently until the butter has melted, then set aside to cool for a few minutes before whisking in the eggs.
- Preheat the oven to 375˚F (190˚C).
- Into a large bowl, sift the flour, brown sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add the mixed wet ingredients and stir with a whisk until fully combined, then transfer to a large liquid measuring cup.
- Pour the batter into the prepared bowls (about 3 1/3 ounces/100 g each, if you want to weigh it), then place the tray with the bowls into the oven. Bake for around 12 minutes (for a slightly gooey center, which is just how I like it!), or 1 minute longer if you’d prefer it fully cooked through. A slight dome or crack will appear in the center of the cakes when they are nearly ready. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool for a few minutes.
- While the cakes are in the oven, make the pecan caramel sauce. Combine the sugar and water in a small saucepan. Place over low heat and stir until the sugar has dissolved. Increase the heat to medium-high and stop stirring. Cook, swirling the pan gently from time to time, until the syrup turns a deep amber color. Remove the pan from the heat and (standing back a little to avoid the splutter) very carefully add the cream and butter. Stir until the caramel is smooth, then add the vanilla, salt, and chopped pecans. Stir to combine.
- Carefully place each cake (still in its bowl) on a serving plate. Spoon some of the warm pecan caramel sauce over the top to serve, and pass around bowls of ice cream or lightly whipped cream.
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